Doctor Treats His Town With Charlie Chaplin Movies Because ‘Laughter is the Best Medicine’

An apple a day keeps the doctor away, but this community adores their local physician because he uses Charlie Chaplin as a means of treating his patients.

Dr. Ashok Sukhumal Aswani first fell in love with the comedic film actor after watching “The Gold Rush” 40 years ago. During the film, the Indian doctor says that he laughed so hard, he fell off his chair – and after seeing the movie 200 more times, Chaplin’s theatrics can still make Aswani laugh.

Aswani loves Chaplin so much, he started The Charlie Circle Foundation fan club in his town of Adipur.

The fan club, which has 375 members, hosts a yearly parade in Chaplin’s honor. The town members celebrate by dancing, eating cake, watching movies, and – of course – donning bowler hats and slacks.

Aswani, who practices herbal medicine, even gives Charlie Chaplin DVDs to his patients alongside his usual prescriptions – because laughter, he says, is absolutely the best medicine.

While there have not been any official studies conducted on the efficacy of the doctor’s methods, there is certainly a lot of science to back it up. Just to name a few, this 2005 study from the University of Maryland School of Medicine shows that laughter is linked to a decreased risk of cardiovascular disease; this doctor claims to have cured his own cancer by smiling and watching funny movies; and this survey of American centenarians shows that the majority of the participants credit a positive attitude for their longevity.

So maybe the next time you’re feeling under the weather, you could put a comedy on TV and get a few chuckles in before you call your doctor.

(WATCH the video below)

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